Manchin Delivers Another Blow to Dems, Again Refusing to Waver on His Support for the Filibuster

Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin again refused to waver on his support for the filibuster as President Joe Biden heads to Georgia to speaking about Democratic voting bills and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer vows to debate scrapping the tool in the coming days.

“We need some good rules changes to make the place work better. But getting rid of the filibuster doesn’t make the place work better,” Manchin told reporters Tuesday.

Manchin and Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema have been the two Senate Democrats consistently opposed to scrapping the filibuster, which establishes firm 60-vote threshold for most bills to pass the chamber. Others are reportedly privately opposed or have recently expressed hesitancy toward doing away with the rule altogether.